1. Field of the Invention
The field of the invention is blade server assemblies and methods for maintaining a blade server installed in a blade server chassis.
2. Description of Related Art
The development of the EDVAC computer system of 1948 is often cited as the beginning of the computer era. Since that time, users have relied on computer systems to simplify the process of information management. Today's computer systems are much more sophisticated than early systems such as the EDVAC. Such modern computer systems deliver powerful computing resources to provide a wide range of information management capabilities through the use of computer software such as database management systems, word processors, spreadsheets, client/server applications, web services, and so on.
In order to deliver powerful computing resources, blade server maintenance personnel may design a computer system that utilizes blade servers installed in a blade server chassis. A blade server is a minimally-packaged computer motherboard that includes one or more computer processors, computer memory, storage, and network interface modules. Blade server maintenance personnel may install multiple blade servers in a blade server chassis to provide a scalable computer system in a relatively small physical space.
As any other computing device, a blade server requires periodic maintenance. Blade server maintenance personnel or other blade server maintenance personnel often performs routine maintenance on a blade server such as installing additional computer memory, swapping computer processors, inserting a daughter card into the motherboard, replacing the blade server entirely, and so on. Performing such maintenance is relatively simple when blade server maintenance personnel may conveniently access the blade server. Current blade server chassis, however, provide no physical support for a blade server during maintenance of the blade server. Maintenance personnel must locate a table or workbench on which to perform the blade server maintenance somewhere near or relatively far from the blade server chassis. Often limited space available in a computer server room may force maintenance personnel to set a blade server on the floor for maintenance—or attempt to support the blade server in some other awkward position. The physical arrangements for blade server maintenance in current art therefore are inconvenient and risk damage from awkward handling of blade servers.